Beirut | The Israeli military kept up its heavy bombardment of a once densely populated area adjoining Beirut after saying its ground troops were battling new targets in southern Lebanon, signalling a widening of the fighting that could further undercut ceasefire efforts.

The airstrikes on the Dahiya area, south of Beirut, where the militant group Hezbollah holds sway, were the latest in a string of bombings this week. The Israeli military issued new evacuation warnings just after dawn on Friday, and missiles began landing soon afterwards, levelling at least one high-rise residential building that had been identified in the warnings and sending a thick dust cloud through the surrounding streets.